Human Nature
by Marrick
Summary: Buffy and Faith get up, totally emotionally drained, to another day of training. Little do they know, a certain pesky civil servant is back! Narrated by Cassie Newton.


"_Human nature is fascinating. It makes us do crazy things sometimes. It defines us, rules us. Even after we would no longer continue to think such things should apply, it does anyway. It's the human nature. It never truly fades." _

The alarm clock was annoyingly on time. Buffy sat up, half delirious. Her hair was across her face, and she was still tired. Oh to hell, with the damn clock! She wanted to say this and throw it against the wall. But it was time to get up. Faith stirred ever so slightly, her head lying against Buffy's breast. "Thank God we still have this room to ourselves." Faith mumbled against Buffy. It had been weeks since Sunnydale high reopened. As usual, all Hell was breaking lose. Some otherworldly entity known as, "The First" was making (His, Her, It's?) move, and potential slayers were coming in from all over the sphere. Willow, Tara, and Giles had arrived first, with three new "Friends", and THAT, was only the beginning. Now, with over thirty girls under their care, Xander and Anya had moved many, if not most of them to their place. But Buffy's house was still small. With only a small number of bedding capable rooms in the house, Buffy had been quick to make Faith and her room off limits. Not even for "Visiting". The room was now filled with bureaus and cabinets filled with clothes, weapons and other, "Adult" paraphernalia. Posters and fist sized dents lined the walls everywhere. With all the new responsibilities the two of them had been handed, Buffy and Faith were, absolutely needing TLC on a nightly basis. That was bad enough, but with Willow and Tara here, they needed a room for a 'little loving" too. The rooms had quickly filled up fast. Kennedy was pissed that all the "right women" were taken, and neither, Willow or Tara, was looking for a third. Buffy and Faith also considered themselves, "A perfect circle" so Kennedy was taking out her frustration on the girls during training.

Faith ran her right hand through her hair, then down over her breast and thigh. She loved sleeping naked. Even on those rare nights lately when the two of them didn't Sex it up, Buffy and Faith slept together in the nude. It felt more elemental. The two of them, they're hands and bodies grinding up against each other, stroking each other all over. Their fingers, sliding into every crevice, sliding over every curve. Some nights they spent hours just staring each other up and down. As if they could fuck with just the power of their sight. As Faith lifted her head from Buffy's breast, a single thread of saliva stretched out to Faith's tongue. Se whipped it across her face with a quick tongue movement and smiled. Bit her lip, and smiled again. "Damn B, do we really need to get up?" In an answer, Buffy groped both of Faith's breast with her hands, and ran her face and tongue, slowly up Faith's cleavage. "Yes Faith. Urgghh. We must get uppp." She groaned as she finished speaking, as if the effort of leaving the bed was too tiring to think about. She looked around. The bed, was actually just a mattress lying on the floor. With blankets and strewn clothes everywhere, it looked more like a bird's nest, than a human couples bedroom. She stretched, as she stood, enjoying a moan, as Faith stroked her clit on the way up. She ran a hand through her hair, and offered a hand to pull Faith up. "Come. We need to bathe." She said this very matter of fact like. Faith let Buffy pull her up, and let the blond slayer lead her by the hand, naked through the hall to the bathroom. As the warm water poured down over their bodies, Buffy and Faith spent no time romancing each other. Instead, they took care of each other's bodies. Soaping up, then washing off, their lover's form. It was a slow, methodical practice, born as much out of necessity, as out of tribal like ritual. They cleaned each other off. Slowly, rubbing a warm towel over each other's curves and drying each other's hair. Then, they went back to their room and got dressed. Also without any romance. All of this was done in complete silence, as it was every day. They didn't need to feel each other up overly during these procedures. There was an undeniable sexual quality inherent to it, all on its own. Properly dressed, the slayers made their way downstairs.

Downstairs I sat, a young looking blond woman with purple highlights in her hair, at the island counter. I'm kind of a quiet girl with a kind of half secret smile on my face as I sit drawling a sunrise.. Every once in a while I look outside through the window. There was a porch roof outback, which was fortunate, because otherwise I would of burst into flame. "Hi Dawn." I said pleasantly enough to Dawn who only a moment afterwards entered the kitchen. My name's Cassie. I've always had psychic powers. It was only a short few months before my death that I had started looking up my abilities. Seeing your upcoming death had that effect on people. Of the many things I had seen in those last months, you know, other than my death, one had to do with, "From beneath you, it devours." I told Buffy that I saw, I would be able to see the way through the puzzle of the monster. Whatever he, she, it was. Turns out, telling a vampire, especially a crazy one, like spike, that you have the secret to see the way, please do something, is a pretty bad idea. In my fear, as the creepy rich kids were trying to kill me, I told Spike, "I have the secret. In life, death, and undead, A psychic vampire with a soul will know the secret." In his insanity, Spike heard this, a line that had appeared in my poems online before, and believed the secret lied in turning me. This had probably been a simple case of bad judgment. Later, in order to save me, Willow and Tara performed the ritual of the preservation of souls. A spell Willow had sworn never to try again, after Angel. This one though, unlike Angel's version, didn't include the corrupting add on line about torturing and losing it with pleasure. That was an Angel punishment exclusive. So, before I was even buried, Cassie Newton's soul had been restored. Making me whole again. If a little different. So now, I sit at the kitchen island, watching the potential slayers handcuff a older woman to the training post in the backyard.

"Hey Cassie, It's actually getting pretty close to normal when you do that now, you know?" Dawn smiled at me as she grabbed an apple and took a bite. "You'd be surprised what you can get used to Dawn." I tell her with my usual sort of sad smile. "Just trying to remember what a sunrise looks like, and thinking philosophy of course." I answer her as of yet, unspoken question. "What kind of philosophy?" dawn asked while chewing. "Oh! Just human nature of course." I reply with a Laugh." "It's the same for humans as it is for vampires. We're all humans here in the beginning. The human heart, it never fades. Not really. Take me for example. I never really cared about sunrises and sunsets when I was alive, but now, I would do anything to see it, to feel the warmth on my skin. Even as it would burn me, kill me. I long for that warmth again." I sit my pencil down and look over at Dawn, reaching out and grabbing an apple Dawn tosses before I even turn. As I bite down, Dawn asked, "You mean like when you go shoe shopping and you buy a whole bunch of new shoes, then see a new pair you want. You've already spent all your money, and it's not even better than the others, but you just have to have it all the same." "Exactly!" I smile and look out the window again.

"What are you looking at?" Dawn asked, coming over. "Oh, just another example of human nature." I reply while still smiling. "The potentials are handcuffing some old lady to the training post. They are deciding whether or not to tell Buffy. My debate, is if they tarry until dark, should I eat her? I've never tasted human blood, but I also hear it's horrific to try going through withdrawal." "HOLY CRAP!" Dawn panicked. "You can't DO THAT! She could be someone's mother!" Dawn had to do something. "Well actually, she's a social worker." I point out, which stops her in her tracks. "And she was spying on us, looking for proof that Buffy's unfit to raise you." "Who's a social worker?" Buffy asked as she and Faith came into the kitchen. I turn. "Doris Kroegor is back. The girls are tying her up outback. Can I eat her? As I said, Human blood is hard to swear off, but I've never tried it." I say, tilting my head and giving off a Lopsided grin. Buffy and Faith shared a look. "Dawn. Tell them to release Doris. I would speak to her." Buffy said, after a moment's thought.

Outside, Doris Kroegor stood handcuffed to a post in the yard. This was crazy! She knew, absolutely knew, that Buffy Summers was a unfit guardian for Dawn, legal titles or not. But _this?_This was impossible! Cults of young women, training with weapons! They marched and trained like soldiers, but this was crazy. Buffy would never keep Dawn after this! We all, Buffy, Faith, Dawn and myself, walk out onto the patio. But I grab Dawn's shoulder and pull her back to keep her on the patio with me. "Please stay?" I ask. "The temptation would be too great to join you all out there." She agrees, and we hang onto the railings to watch. I have to smile, again. Buffy's dressed in all white, while Faith's wearing all black. Again. It's funny to see them almost literally wearing their personalities on their sleeves. Buffy draws a sword from a pile of training weapons and swings it right at Doris's throat, stopping just before slicing into her aging flesh. "Look." She begins after a moment. "Demons are real. There you go. So are vampires, werewolves and everything else that goes bump in the night. I am facing a very real threat. I do not have time for your bullshit." I can't help but wonder what she'll do next. This woman is by all rights, the reason Buffy had to legally adopt Dawn as her daughter, not just raise her as her sister. Doris wouldn't stop poking her nose around. So judgmental. Would Buffy give her to me? How would she taste? William says that older people aren't worth it. The blood is corrupted by any number of things. Makes it taste bad. But I can't help wondering, all the same. "You have two, options." Buffy continues. "One, you leave and never come back. Two, you come back, or try to hurt one of my girls, or Dawn, now. I either cut you open, and leave you to rot, or I hand you over to her!" Buffy points at me and I wave to give a nice warm welcome. "That woman with the highlights, is a vampire. She will kill you. The woman next to her is my daughter. THAT woman, is Faith, my lover. She has the strength to tear through you like you're made of tissue paper, and so do I." "You're insane! You belong in prison!" She yells at Buffy's face. "Even so, I'm going to set you free, and you're going to make a choice, NOW." Buffy unhand cuffs Doris, and she wastes no time running right towards the patio back door. Right at me. I smile warmly at her as she draws closer, then snap my right hand around her throat and lift her up. It's kind of funny how her eyes seem to bulge outwards at my strength. Stupid human, I have no sympathy at all. I turn towards Dawn. "So hey, what do you say we get steak later?" Though she clearly can't tear her eyes away from Doris's, she answers me anyway. "Yea sure. I'll bleed it for you, and you cook it for me. After all, you're the better cook. I just burn everything." "Okay." I reply. "I'll throw in some of those little peeled potatoes for us too. We can share, I love how they add a little more texture when you eat them with the blood, you now?" She nods and we turn back as Buffy approaches.

"Let her go Cassie." "Buffy, you're my friend. Look what she's done to you!" I say, not sure if I have the guts to eat her if Buffy caves. "If I let her go, she'll just come back later. Cause more trouble. You know that." Buffy nods. "I know, but if you kill and eat her, you'll be the one suffering, when you have to go through withdrawal later." I know she's right. I let her go. She runs in through the house, and out through the front door. "Nice work Cassie." Buffy says to me, as she and Faith walk back into the house to talk to Spike. "You spared her." Dawn says, surprised, with a huge grin. "Yea, I did." I say after a moment. "She'll be back. I'll kill her then." The potentials resume training and Dawn and I head inside.

"_Like I said, human nature makes us do crazy things sometimes…_


End file.
